Students are still choosing to study in debt and graduate with scarce job prospects - and even less financial security - over taking up an apprenticeship.
Recently UCAS revealed a 4% rise in university applications, so why aren't young people considering becoming an apprentice?
Either their schools just aren't telling them, or they aren't aware of the benefits. For example, did you know finance, law and accountancy don't actually require you to have a degree?
So, to coincide with National Apprenticeship Week, we're here to wax lyrical about why you should be considering an apprenticeship just as seriously as university.
- You can earn (loads) as you learn
- You're guaranteed a job
- Apprentices boosted UK business by £1.8bn last year
- A quarter of graduates earn LESS than apprentices
- You can work for a top national law firm - without having to go to university
- Four in five companies will be hiring apprentices this year
- It can give you a huge confidence boost
- You can do pretty cool things, like meeting politicians and getting interviewed on national television
- You can become an accountant or a risk advisor for firms such as PwC without getting into mountains of debt
- Oh, and you can also do an apprenticeship to become a pilot or space engineer
Not bad, hey?
If you'd like some more information on apprenticeships, visit our dedicated section. Oh, and it features a live jobs feed too.